As the name suggests, bringing both rogue like elements and the thrill of the claw machine, Dungeon Clawler is quite the unique rogue like. The only title of its kind is a deck building simulator with a claw machine-style progression, developed by the indie team Stray Fawn Studio.

Dungeon Clawler is a turn-based rogue like where you will play on a quest to retrieve lost treasure or something precious. Players choose one of the characters, each of which comes with its own array of permanent bonuses and starting deck ( composition varies between characters but weapons and shields are usually represented among the cards ). But what sets this game apart is its claw machine mechanism to pull cards, which can follow through in battle and defense.

The claw machine is also how you get weapons and items, though it is also a way to activate rogue like effects that can increase your chances of snapping up better cards, or even buff cards you already have. This "random" factor sets Dungeon Clawler apart from most rogue like games, which have been met with very positive reception.

The game involves progressively generated dungeons with each dungeon consisting of enemies, stage challenges, and treasures that await you. On the strategic level, the game prompts you to stay flexible and enjoy the randomness of each run. The clawer ensures you'll always be excited as every play will be different.

There are special artifacts, too, which can be found in dungeons and which can radically upgrade a player’s powers and their adventure outcomes. These figurines, “lucky runes”, where the player can link a connection between them to land the final impact. The adjustable difficulty, for casual and hardcore player. You can set several difficulty levels and earn “luckier claws” that fit your play style. In addition, the dungeon includes some gambling mechanics (the option " gamble " is what this game calls it), where players can use the coins they have gathered to play games of chance.

Dungeon Clawler's visuals are colourful and bright, and it takes advantage of happy music and clear graphics to imbue the odd world with life. The superstitions of the evil dungeon lord, the many strange entities that roam his hall, like the “spicy rabbit head monster,” and the need to stave off dark forces from the outside of this self-contained, never ending world weave into such humor and creativity that what seems like a snazzy slice of a super-heroic dungeon crawl somehow feels brand new again.

To sum up, Dungeon Clawler is a fun spin on the genre that combines deck building and rogue like mechanics with a good old-fashioned claw machine. The strategic piece, a lust for items, fun art and humour all do what you'd expect, forging a hard but fun game. It is undoubtedly a game with a few hours of original runs if you can handle slightly punishing game mechanics, and I am convinced of the fact that you will have fun in this game.

By Jerry | Copyright © GameHola - All Rights Reserved